Elbert County commissioners signed a $3 million contract last week to replace a moldy justice center in Kiowa after years of complaints from public officials and workers and a pending lawsuit by a county judge.

Judge Kevin Sidel filed suit against the County Commission a year ago claiming negligence, shoddy construction, lax inspections and an “unclean environment” until the courthouse was closed because of mold in September 2004.

The suit cites “dangerous conditions of a public building.”

The mold was found inside walls of the courthouse and in old law books that had gotten wet but were not discarded.

Prosecutors, judges, clerks and probation officers moved to Castle Rock in 2004, but the County Commission left its 34-member Sheriff’s Department in the leaky justice center.

“I asked a number of times for an alternative location, but got no response,” said Sheriff Bill Frangis. “In reality, my staff was very seriously considering a lawsuit against the County Commission.”

Frangis said several members of his staff have claimed illnesses related to mold spores, but all of their workers’ compensation claims have been denied by the county’s insurer.

“The County Commission just keeps claiming the building is safe,” he said.

But the roof has continued to leak, he said.

“Whenever there’s a wet ceiling panel, their solution is to just replace the ceiling panel,” Frangis said.

Conditions at the building motivated deputies to unionize, he said.

Commissioners Suzie Graeff and Hope Goetz would not comment on the mold issue.

“We’re under a gag order at this time,” Goetz said, citing Sidel’s lawsuit.

Sidel, Elbert County attorney Mark Scheffel and Commissioner John Metli did not return calls for comment.

The mold was discovered three years ago when a justice center employee complained of an allergic reaction. Soon after, four more people claimed mold-related health problems, including headaches, muscle aches and problems concentrating.

The American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine estimates that 10 percent of people are sensitive to mold spores, particularly those with allergies and asthmas, and about half of those may need to see a doctor as a result.

The county has spent more than $150,000 attempting to seal leaks that contributed to mold in the 22-year-old building over the past three years.

Elbert County residents have been making a 48-mile round trip between Kiowa and Castle Rock to use Douglas County’s court system since the mold issue first arose three years ago.

“It’s a total pain,” said Jeremy Johnson, a resident of Simla in south Elbert County, a 130-mile round trip to Castle Rock, as he waited in line to view a court file. “Who ever heard of a county that doesn’t care if it has a courthouse?”

Under the new contract, the existing justice center would get a new roof, new windows, new insulation and waterproof exterior siding. The Sheriff’s Department would occupy the entire building before Christmas, expanding law enforcement’s existing space from about 2,200 square feet to more than 7,000, Frangis said.

A new 13,000-square-foot justice center for court operations will be built next door. Construction is expected to take a year and a half to two years, and then court operations would return to Kiowa, said Rob McCallum, a spokesman for the State Court Administrator’s office.

District Attorney Carol Chambers, whose protests about the unhealthy conditions first led to the justice center’s closure three years ago, said the delays have been a disservice to Elbert County residents.

“We’ve been able to make do in Castle Rock,” she said of her staff. “But the hardship has been on the people of Douglas County.”

Joey Bunch was a reporter for 12 years at The Denver Post before leaving to join The Gazette in Colorado Springs. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry. He likes stories more than reports.